Earlier in 2023, JYP Entertainment and Republic Records paired up to begin the YouTube series A2K, which created a girl group assembled out of contestants from the United States and Canada. Along similar lines, HYBE and Geffen Records teamed up for the 2023 survival competition series The Debut: Dream Academy, which assembled 20 contestants from all around the world to compete to become a global girl group. Fan voting on Weverse would affect the final results, making it important to keep up to date. The series had episodes (and three missions) airing from September 1, 2023 through to the live finale on November 17, 2023, and here we have provided complete The Debut: Dream Academy mission summary and results for the entire series! The name of the final girl group is Katseye.

In total, the 20 contestants for The Debut: Dream Academy from HYBE X Geffen Records were as follows, including their nation of origin and age at the start of the series: Adéla Jergova, age 19 (Slovakia); Brooklyn Van Zandt, age 17 (United States); Celeste Diaz, age 19 (Argentina); Daniela Avanzini, age 19 (United States); Emily Kelavos, age 17 (United States); Ezrela Abraham, age 20 (Australia); Hinari Irie, age 14 (Japan); Iliya Fedartsova, age 21 (Belarus); Karlee Tanaka, age 19 (United States); Lara Rajagopalan, age 17 (United States); Lexie Levin, age 19 (Sweden); Manon Bannerman, age 21 (Switzerland); Marquise Auramornrat, age 17 (Thailand); Megan Skiendiel, age 17 (United States); Mei Terada, age 17 (Japan); Nayoung Lee, age 21 (South Korea); Samara Siqueira, age 17 (Brazil); Sophia Laforteza, age 20 (Philippines); Ua Shimada, age 15 (Japan); and Yoonchae Jeong, age 15 (South Korea).

Breaking the total down by country, there were six contestants from the United States, three contestants from Japan, two contestants from South Korea, and one contestant from Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Brazil, the Philippines, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, and Thailand. Notably, over 120,000 people had applied for this opportunity back in November 2021 before being narrowed down to this final 20. Many of the contestants had been training at HYBE for more than a year prior to the series beginning to air.

Prior to the beginning of the series airing, on August 22, 2023, HYBE released a message from several of its artists (TXT, Le Sserafim, fromis_9, and Enhypen) to introduce the series. On August 28, 2023, HYBE released “[HYBE x Geffen] The Debut: Dream Academy – Art Film,” a seven-minute film featuring the contestants in a dreamy atmosphere, and there was a press conference with the contestants introducing themselves at the Geffen Records Studio in Santa Monica, California. On August 30, 2023, HYBE released an official trailer for the series.

All Mission & Episode Summary, Results, and Spoilers for The Debut: Dream Academy

The Debut: Dream Academy comprises three missions, which led up to its live finale on November 17, 2023. Mission 1 is “The Showcase,” unveiling all of the training the contestants had undergone at HYBE, and two contestants would be eliminated afterward. Mission 2 is the “Team Mission,” taking place in South Korea to enhance contestants’ artistry and teamwork “beyond basic individual skills,” and it would end with four more contestant eliminations. And Mission 3 is “Artistry,” testing contestants’ abilities to execute unique concepts. Four more contestants would be eliminated after that, leaving 10 remaining to perform in the live finale.

Mission 1, “The Showcase”: Contestants Divided into Two Dance & Two Vocal Teams

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission Announcement,” aired September 1, 2023: The three-minute first episode of the series explained to the 20 contestants that, for Mission 1, “The Showcase,” they would be divided into four teams: two dance teams and two vocal teams. The Dream Academy team compositions were as follows:

• Team A (Dance), Performing “Pink Venom” by Blackpink: Daniela, Megan, Ua, Adéla, Hinari
• Team B (Dance), Performing “OMG” by NewJeans: Emily, Ezrela, Marquise, Yoonchae, Mei
• Team A (Vocal), Performing “Dancing on My Own/Happier Than Ever” by Robyn x Billie Eilish: Karlee, Lexie, Iliya, Brooklyn, Manon
• Team B (Vocal), Performing “Still into You” (Special Arrangement) by Paramore: Sophia, Lara, Celeste, Samara, Nayoung

Two contestants would be eliminated following the results of Mission 1. On September 6, 2023, beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET, HYBE released the official performance video for all four teams: Team A, Dance (“Pink Venom”); Team B, Dance (“OMG”), Team A, Vocal (“Dancing on My Own” X ” Happier Than Ever”); and Team B, Vocal (“Still into You”).

Fan voting for contestants on Weverse would be open from Wednesday, September 6, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. PT (11:00 a.m. ET) to Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 11:59 a.m. PT (2:59 a.m. ET on September 10). Each day, beginning again at 8:00 a.m. PT, fans would be able to vote for six contestants total (only one vote per contestant per day). Additionally, fans could vote on YouTube via the HYBE Labels Plus channel, by hitting “Like” on the Mission 1 Fan Cams that they like; in the final results, 10 Fan Cam “Likes” would equal 1 “vote” during Mission 1 of The Debut: Dream Academy.

The top six contestants would be “safe” to continue on to Mission 2. Use our links above to watch the videos, but the period for voting for Mission 1 has closed!

Short preparation vlogs, only about 75-120 seconds, were released for each contestant between September 10 and 14 at 3:00 p.m. ET / noon PT. Owing to their short length, none are substantial and require summary, but here is a link to each vlog in the order that they released: Nayoung vlog, Mei vlog, Celeste vlog, Karlee vlog, Emily vlog, Samara vlog, Lara vlog, Megan vlog, Iliya vlog, Ua vlog, Sophia vlog, Yoonchae vlog, Ezrela vlog, Brooklyn vlog, Adela vlog, Manon vlog, Marquise vlog, Hinari vlog, Lexie vlog, and Daniela vlog.

Mission 1 Evaluator’s Commentary at HYBE x Geffen

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 1 Commentary (feat. Guest Advisor),” aired September 8, 2023: President of HxG Mitra Darab, Interscope VP of A&R and Marketing Charlie Christie, Executive Creator of HxG Sungdeuk Son, and songwriter / guest advisor Melanie Fontana gathered to provide professional opinion on the Mission 1 performances. For Team B Vocal, Fontana praised the “chemistry” between Nayoung and Lara, as well as Samara’s vocal run at the end of the song. For Team A Vocal, Fontana thought they sounded like solo artists more than a cohesive group, and everyone agreed that Manon needed to push herself harder and that it was a problem that she had missed some rehearsals. Brooklyn was praised for leading the performance though.

On Team A Dance, Megan and Daniela stood out to Fontana for hitting the choreography “so hard,” and Hinari was collaborative and a “good backup for everyone.” Fontana thought Adéla could have done more to stand out and express her personality though. On Team B Dance, she appreciated the “fun” and total lack of “nervous energy” across the team, and she felt Emily and Ezrela drove it. Yoonchae “kind of slayed,” Marquise’s personality was “felt,” and the two of them with Emily were Fontana’s front runners.

Ultimately, Fontana, as the guest advisor, preferred the Team B Dance (“OMG”) performance over that of Team A Dance, and she preferred the Team B Vocal (“Still into You”) performance over that of Team A Vocal. However, this was only her personal opinion, which the executives present would take into consideration for the final results of The Debut: Dream Academy Mission 1. The final results on September 15 would provide a more “in-depth evaluation” of contestant performances.

Interim, “halftime” voting results were also released on September 8, with a top six of (1) Nayoung, (2) Sophia, (3) Samara, (4) Manon, (5) Yoonchae, and (6) Lara. However, these “halftime” results would have no bearing on the final results to be released on September 15.

Dream Academy Mission 1 Final Results & Contestant Eliminations

“[HYBE x Geffen] Dream Academy: Mission 1 Result Announcement,” aired September 15: 2023: The contestants convened to receive prerecorded feedback from the evaluators before the two contestant eliminations. On Team B Vocal, Charlie Christie thought they were the best group performance. Nayeon and Lara had great harmony. Celeste had “very unique” tone. Sungdeuk Son thought Celeste needed to improve her vocal skills and she lacked confidence as a result. Sophia, Lara, and Samara stood out to Mitra Darab.

On Team A Vocal, Christie thought they were five amazing individual singers. Iliya stood out, not necessarily in a good way, as someone who sang like a soloist in the group. Son thought Manon’s voice was low and unique, but she looked nervous. Karlee needed to make more dynamic facial expressions, and the song could have been more emotional.

On Team A Dance, the performance fit Adéla’s style well, but when it wasn’t time to perform her part, it was felt she did not support the rest of the team well enough. Hinari worked hard and did well, but Sungdeok Son just didn’t notice her at all during the performance. He said she was “pretty weak in her talent, skill, energy, confidence, and other things,” and it felt like team members were carrying her. Daniela and Megan were felt to have “amazing” chemistry.

On Team B Dance, Son was happy with this team in general and wanted to “compliment every single one of them,” especially Ezrela. He also thought Emily did such a “great job” despite not doing this type of dance before. Mitra felt Marquise had seemed shy as a person but performed in an energetic and bright way.

The final results of the voting in Mission 1 of The Debut: Dream Academy were as follows, with the top six contestants safe from elimination and two contestants chosen for elimination by evaluators:

1. Nayoung – 109,289 votes
2. Sophia – 92,617 votes
3. Samara – 92,544 votes
4. Manon – 79,083 votes (not present due to illness)
5. Lara – 75,213 votes
6. Yoonchae – 72,577 votes
7. Lexie – 67,863 votes
8. Marquise – 65,765 votes
9. Ezrela – 55,683 votes
10. Megan – 55,536 votes
11. Celeste – 55,405 votes
12. Mei – 50,159 votes
13. Ua – 47,961 votes
14. Emily – 44,385 votes
15. Hinari – 44,175 votes (eliminated by evaluators)
16. Iliya – 43,235 votes
17. Daniela – 42,699 votes
18. Karlee – 41,747 votes
19. Brooklyn – 37,955 votes
20. Adéla – 29,165 votes (eliminated by evaluators)

The two contestants whom evaluators chose to eliminate from The Debut: Dream Academy after Mission 1 were Adéla and Hinari. The remaining 18 contestants would proceed on to Mission 2, the Team Mission, in South Korea.

A short “epilogue” video with final reflection and thank yous from Adéla and Hinari was released on September 16 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT.

Afterward, until September 20 at 2:59 a.m. ET / September 19 at 11:59 p.m. PT, fans had been able to submit questions to contestants for them to answer.

Mission 2, “Team Mission”: Contestants Compete in Korea

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 2 Announcement,” aired September 25, 2023: Via prerecorded video, Le Sserafim introduced the “Team Mission” to the contestants. They explained that, while the talent of each contestant is important, the balance of the team is also “very important” and would be a central emphasis of the mission. So, Mission 2 would be chiefly about teamwork, and contestants would ultimately want to “show off your charm and skills as well as team chemistry.”

Contestants were divided into four teams, two teams performing “Fearless” by Le Sserafim and two performing “Antifragile” also by Le Sserafim. The team compositions for Mission 2 of The Debut: Dream Academy were as follows:

• Team A “Fearless”: Lexie, Marquise, Mei, Brooklyn, Nayoung
• Team B “Fearless”: Daniela, Manon, Ua, Ezrela, Celeste
• Team A “Antifragile”: Emily, Yoonchae, Lara, Sophia
• Team B “Antifragile”: Iliya, Karlee, Samara, Megan

Mission 2 performance videos were released on September 28, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT on HYBE Labels YouTube: Team A “Fearless,” Team B “Fearless,” Team A “Antifragile,” and Team B “Antifragile.”

This time, fans viewing the videos would vote on Weverse for their two favorite “Fearless” performers and two favorite “Antifragile” performers from any of the teams. Additionally, fans could hit “Like” on each contestant’s individual Mission 2 Solo Fan Cam on YouTube, where 10 Likes would equate to one vote. Each individual vote for every team member would then be averaged. Whichever team received more votes on average would receive immunity from elimination. Four contestants would be eliminated in the results of Mission 2 of The Debut: Dream Academy.

The fan voting period for Mission 2 would be as follows: September 28, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. PT / 11:00 a.m. ET to October 2, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. PT (October 3, 2023 at 2:59 a.m. ET), with viewers able to vote once per day. At 1:00 a.m. ET on October 1, 2023, “halftime” voting results revealed that “Fearless” Team B was leading Team A by 2,380 votes, and “Antifragile” Team A was leading Team B by 5,798 votes.

Preparation vlogs were released on September 26 and 27, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. ET / noon PT, with the first being for the “Fearless” teams and the second being for the “Antifragile” teams. Both “Fearless” teams dealt with sickness, particularly Manon (who began practicing late), Celeste, and Mei, but everyone persevered. On the “Antifragile” teams, Emily and Megan took on a leadership role for their teams, as far as the dancing was concerned.

Mission 2 Evaluator’s Commentary at HYBE x Geffen

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 2 Commentary,” aired October 1, 2023: President of HxG Mitra Darab, Geffen VP of A&R and Marketing Charlie Christie, Executive Creator of HxG Sungdeuk Son, Source Music Performing Directing Team Leader Park So-yeon, and Megatone and Score of Producer 13 gathered to evaluate the “Fearless” and “Unforgiven” performances. (Megatone and Score were among the co-songwriters of each song.)

Beginning with “Antifragile,” Score felt that Team A expressed the energy of the song “much more” than Team B did. He thought Lara pulled it off “really well” but couldn’t keep up with the fast pace of the song, while Emily was confident and energetic. Megatone thought Yoonchae knew how to perform key points well but had a slightly “flat” tone that wasn’t exciting. Meanwhile, Megan on Team B stood out to him.

Park So-yeon complimented both teams for expressing good teamwork and individuality alike in the short time they had to practice. She thought Team A’s “overall balance” was “much better,” but Team B had “way more interesting” individual expressions. Sungdeuk Son lamented that Iliya “didn’t show off her presence” again, like in Mission 1. He also thought that Karlee gave the “best” on Team B and that she has a “lot of strengths,” but her strengths weren’t appearing on stage at the right moments yet.

Mitra Darab observed that she believed fan voting tended to involve viewers voting for their own country, but their job was to focus on skill to decide eliminations. She was extremely impressed with Emily’s growth, especially vocally, and she preferred Team A “Antifragile.” However, Darab didn’t think either team did as well as they could have. Meanwhile, Charlie Christie felt Iliya and Karlee had both given their best but that they can still give more.

Moving on to “Fearless,” of either team, Megatone thought Lexie stood out the most vocally with an attractive tone, but Nayoung didn’t make her presence felt on Team A. Darab agreed that Nayoung could do better, and on Team A, Brooklyn did not shine as much as the others. Score said that Brooklyn’s vocals were “too breathy and a bit shaky,” and Christie said that some of Brooklyn’s singing took him out of the performance. Park thought Ua on Team B stood out as the best dancer of either team, and Ua could “work as a professional dancer right now.” However, Park otherwise felt Team A’s performance was more stable and overall better. Megatone added that Ua is not a talented vocalist but somehow sounded attractive anyway.

Darab said Celeste performed well but continued to be concerned about whether her “tone” blended properly. She thought this was a weaker performance for Ezrela too. Son felt Celeste was struggling to keep up and needed to improve quickly. He also thought Nayoung did not perform well in a group. Meanwhile, he deemed Mei was “good” despite not actually standing out in any way, but she needed to give more.

Ultimately, there did not seem to be a clear-cut preferred “Fearless” performance among the evaluators in Mission 2, but the final results of the Team Mission in The Debut: Dream Academy would be revealed soon.

After a delay from its original scheduling, a video entitled “The Dream Surprise (Le Sserafim’s Surprise Visit to the Dream Academy)” was ultimately published October 1, 2023 at 11:00 p.m. ET / 8:00 p.m. PT. Le Sserafim surprised the contestants, watched them practice their songs, and did a Q&A with them. During the Q&A, HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk (“Hitman” Bang) also surprised the contestants by appearing and answering questions. The contestants inquired about the possibility of visiting the Lotte World amusement park in Seoul, so as a surprise, HYBE did arrange for a Lotte World trip, which became its own dedicated video.

The Debut: Dream Academy Mission 2 results, contestant eliminations, and an epilogue would be released on October 8, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT.

Dream Academy Mission 2 Final Results & Contestant Eliminations

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 2 Result Announcement,” aired October 8, 2023: Prior to announcing eliminations, the series revealed it had asked the contestants several questions including “What makes you think you have what it takes to be in the debut group?” and “Which contestants would you want in your group?” The series then revealed to the contestants how many of their fellow contestants had included them in their group, with the results being as follows:

• 14 contestants included Sophia
• 12 contestants included Daniela
• 9 contestants included Samara
• 8 contestants included Megan
• 6 contestants included Lara and Emily
• 5 contestants included Ezrela
• 4 contestants included Marquise
• 3 contestants included Nayoung and Karlee
• 2 contestants included Mei, Lexie, and Yoonchae
• 1 contestants included Celeste, Manon, and Iliya
• 0 contestants included Brooklyn and Ua

A series of anonymous questions had also been asked to the contestants. For the question of “Which team performed the best?”, contestants were split 50/50 on who performed “Fearless” better, while 83% of contestants believed Team A “Antifragile” performed better. For the question of “Which contestant could be eliminated this mission?”, contestants received votes in the following order (where votes are a bad thing in this case, of course): Iliya (11), Manon (10), Emily (8), Brooklyn (7), Yoonchae (5), Lexie / Celeste / Karlee (4), Marquise / Lara (2), Mei / Ua / Nayoung (1), and Sophia / Megan / Ezrela / Daniela / Samara (0).

Ultimately, in the final results of The Debut: Dream Academy Mission 2, the Team Mission, here is who won among Team A and Team B for “Fearless” and “Antifragile,” respectively:

• Team B “Fearless” (Daniela, Manon, Ua, Ezrela, Celeste) won over Team A “Fearless” (Lexie, Marquise, Mei, Brooklyn, Nayoung) with a score of 37,743 to 32,173, a difference of 5,570. Team B “Fearless” was safe from elimination.
• Team A “Antifragile” (Emily, Yoonchae, Lara, Sophia) won over Team B “Antifragile” (Iliya, Karlee, Samara, Megan) with a score of 49,690 to 37,009, a difference of 12,681 votes. Team A “Antifragile” was safe from elimination.

Below is the individual breakdown of votes that every contestant received across Mission 2, which resulted in the averaged vote scores above and the following four eliminations:

1. Sophia – 69,098 votes (Team A “Antifragile,” winner)
2. Samara – 68,165 votes (Team B “Antifragile”)
3. Yoonchae – 57,801 votes (Team A “Antifragile,” winner)
4. Nayoung – 54,704 votes (Team A “Fearless”)
5. Daniela – 44,572 votes (Team B “Fearless,” winner)
6. Lara – 43,766 votes (Team A “Antifragile,” winner)
7. Manon – 43,581 votes (Team B “Fearless,” winner)
8. Celeste – 40,281 votes (Team B “Fearless,” winner)
9. Megan – 37,778 votes (Team B “Antifragile”)
10. Ezrela – 34,181 votes (Team B “Fearless,” winner)
11. Lexie – 32,806 votes (Team A “Fearless”)
12. Marquise – 28,367 votes (Team A “Fearless”)
13. Emily – 28,095 votes (Team A “Antifragile,” winner)
14. Ua – 26,100 votes (Team B “Fearless,” winner)
15. Mei – 23,666 votes (Team A “Fearless”) (eliminated)
16. Iliya – 22,122 votes (Team B “Antifragile”) (eliminated)
17. Brooklyn – 21,322 votes (Team A “Fearless”) (eliminated)
18. Karlee – 19,971 votes (Team B “Antifragile”) (eliminated)

In summary, the following four contestants were eliminated in The Debut: Dream Academy Mission 2, and their names were called in this order:

• Brooklyn
• Karlee
• Iliya
• Mei

The Mission 2 epilogue was released at 11:00 p.m. ET / 8:00 p.m. PT on October 8, 2023, in which the four eliminated contestants expressed their emotional reflection on the Dream Academy experience and offered their goodbyes. Fourteen contestants remained in the competition to compete in Mission 3.

However, on October 21, 2023, it was announced that Lexie had voluntarily exited the competition, citing a desire to focus on music production instead. This received its own special video, and the final number of contestants was reduced to 13.

Mission 3, “Artistry”: Dream Academy Contestants Cover Iconic Pop Songs

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 3 Announcement,” aired October 25, 2023: Creative Director Humberto Leon introduced Mission 3, “Artistry,” to the remaining 13 contestants. Each group would be performing an “iconic song by a legendary female artist and its own unique concept and original choreography.” The goal would be to convey a distinct narrative through “choreography, styling, and location.” Contestants would have to fully embody the essence of a song and honor its legacy while introducing their own individual personalities to the performance.

The team compositions and their songs for Mission 3 of The Debut: Dream Academy were as follows:

• Team “Confident” (by Demi Lovato): Lara, Megan, Marquise, Yoonchae
• Team “Buttons” (by The Pussycat Dolls): Celeste, Daniela, Manon, Nayoung, Sophia
• Team “Wannabe” (by Spice Girls): Emily, Ezrela, Ua, Samara

Performance videos for each team were released on October 28, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT for viewing: Team “Confident,” Team “Buttons,” and Team “Wannabe.”

After Mission 3 (and Lexie’s unexpected exit), three more contestants would be eliminated, leaving 10 contestants for the live finale. Viewers would be able to vote for their four favorite contestants each day during the voting period, which was from October 28, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT till October 30, 2023 at 10:59 a.m. ET / 7:59 a.m. PT (only 48 hours total). During that period, viewers could also vote for contestants by “liking” their individual Mission 3 fan cams on YouTube. The top two contestants in voting would be guaranteed a spot in the live finale. The 10 finalists would also perform in a “bonus video.”

A Mission 3 preparation vlog was released on October 29, 2023 at 11:00 p.m. ET / 8:00 p.m. PT.

Mission 3 Evaluator’s Commentary at HYBE x Geffen

“The Debut: Dream Academy – Mission 3 Commentary,” aired October 30, 2023: Geffen VP of A&R and Marketing Charlie Christie, Executive Creator of HxG Sungdeuk Son, and guest advisor / Senior T&D Program Manager Missy Paramo convened to evaluate the Mission 3 performances. (Mitra Darab did not attend due to illness.)

Son said Team “Confident” met his expectation. To him, Lara executed the concept the best, while Megan was showing “stable growth,” but Marquise was continuing to be unable to showcase her “charms” as part of a group. However, Paramo noted that Marquise had actually had a “pretty bad” back injury the night before filming, and both she and Christie found her performance impressive given that drawback. Christie also added that Marquise has a unique vocal tone and her confidence during performance is evident.

For Team “Buttons,” Son noted there had been “many concerns” about the group for this performance, but “everyone gave it their all” in the end. Paramo called Daniela “a star,” and she and Son agreed that Daniela took a strong leadership role in the performance. Son did not think Celeste stood out as well and was disappointed in her, despite also saying that she was “capable in her section.” Paramo revealed that Sophia had also been “super sick” during training and was still not feeling well for the performance. She noted that Sophia had “great leadership skills” as well. Meanwhile, it was revealed that Nayoung had expressed doubts to Paramo about joining the final group; Nayoung essentially worried that, if she made the group, she could be taking away a spot from someone who wanted it more than she did, because Nayoung could see herself becoming a soloist and leaving the group eventually. Christie said he found it “difficult” to imagine putting someone in the group who was not sure if they truly wanted to be in the group.

Lastly, for Team “Wannabe,” Christie though they “nailed this song,” even though he had initially thought it could “maybe be a challenge.” Everyone on the team “perfectly honed it in.” Son thought that Ezrela’s charms “exploded” in this mission, with her singing, dancing, and especially facial expressions shining through. He also said that Ua’s “cute, young charm” matched her age, but her vocals needed more practice and Ua needed to try harder, even though she had “improved a lot” since joining Dream Academy. Paramo revealed that Ezrela had lost someone “very close to her” recently and essentially praised her for performing as she did despite that setback.

Dream Academy Mission 3 Final Results & Contestant Eliminations

“Mission 3 Result Announcement: Reveal of the 10 Finalists,” aired November 5, 2023: The Debut: Dream Academy wasted no time in announcing the results of Mission 3, revealing that Sophia and Lara had finished in first and second, respectively, in the voting, guaranteeing that they would continue on to the live finale. Here is the full list of rankings for The Debut: Dream Academy Mission 3, including vote totals and three contestant eliminations:

1. Sophia – 45,184 votes
2. Lara – 36,099 votes
3. Nayoung – 34,030 votes (eliminated)
4. Ezrela – 29,678 votes
5. Daniela – 28,252 votes
6. Celeste – 27,929 votes (eliminated)
7. Emily – 27,635 votes
8. Samara – 27,535 votes
9. Manon – 26,767 votes
10. Marquise – 25,133 votes
11. Megan – 22,939 votes
12. Yoonchae – 22,529 votes
13. Ua – 22,137 votes (eliminated)

In summary, the following three contestants were eliminated in Mission 3 of The Debut: Dream Academy:

• Ua
• Celeste
• Nayoung

The Mission 3 epilogue was released on November 5, 2023 at 11:00 p.m. ET / 8:00 p.m. PT, in which Celeste, Nayoung, and Ua reflected on how they had grown and expressed their appreciation for the experience.

The remaining 10 contestants would continue on to the live finale of The Debut: Dream Academy on November 17, 2023 at 10:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. PT, when the final group composition would be announced by HYBE and Geffen Records. There is no official indication of how many members will be included in the final group at this time.

A bonus performance of “Break Free” by Ariana Grande was presented by mostly nine finalists (Samara had a recent knee injury but would be present for the finale.) on November 10, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT on HYBE Labels YouTube.

The Debut: Dream Academy Live Finale to Confirm Final Group Members Lineup

Announced around midnight ET on November 10, 2023: Between November 10, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. ET / 8:00 a.m. PT and November 17, 2023 at 10:59 a.m. ET / 7:59 a.m. PT, viewers would be able to “early vote” daily for seven days for whom they would like to see in the final group lineup created from The Debut: Dream Academy. Each day, viewers could vote for three contestants on Weverse. According to the show, “A combination of the votes collected during the early voting period, real-time votes during the Live Finale, and the evaluator’s scores will determine the debut lineup.”

HYBE and Geffen Records eventually provided a basic mathematical breakdown of how voting would affect the final group lineup: “The final debut members will be determined by 50 points from fan voting and 50 points from the judges’ score for a total of 100 points. A contestant can earn a total of 50 points from fan voting. They can receive [at maximum] 40 points from early voting and [at maximum] 10 points from live voting.” In other words, judge scores would determine half of the final results of the group lineup, while fan voting would determine the other half. Judges’ scores would be based on five criteria: dance, vocal, star quality, attitude, and team chemistry.

The period for live voting would begin concurrently with the live finale itself on Friday, November 17, 2023, at 10:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. PT.

The Debut: Dream Academy Live Finale Results & Final Group Members Lineup

“[HYBE X Geffen] The Debut: Dream Academy – Live Finale,” aired November 17, 2023: The finale began by revealing that only six members would debut in the final group. President of HxG Mitra Darab, Geffen VP of A&R and Marketing Charlie Christie, and Executive Creator of HxG Sungdeuk Son were present at the event. HYBE chairman Si-Hyuk Bang and IGA Chairman & CEO John Janick were also present. Son reiterated the five qualities that the judges were looking for in final group members: dance, vocal, star quality, attitude, and team chemistry.

Afterward, Daniela, Megan, Emily, Marquise, and Yoonchae performed an original song, “Girls Don’t Like.” Christie praised Emily’s growth, but his top pick among the five was Daniela, for her consistently high and increasing performance. Darab praised Yoonchae for all of her growth in the academy despite not knowing fluent English, but her top pick in the group was Megan, for being so “alluring.” Lastly, Son praised everyone’s teamwork, and he cited Marquise and Megan particularly. Ultimately, Son chose Megan as his top pick, but he praised Marquise for showing who she truly was in this final performance.

Next, Manon, Lara, Samara, Ezrela, and Sophia performed an original song, “Dirty Water.” Christie praised Ezrela’s charm throughout the whole competition, but his top pick within the group for this performance was Sophia, for how she constantly strives to improve herself and others. Darab praised Samara’s performance and visual but also selected Sophia as her top pick, calling her an “all-around leader” and a “star.” Son felt that Manon and Lara stood out the most, but he ultimately selected Lara as his top pick, for how her charms could now elevate her entire team.

Following some reflection on the whole The Debut: Dream Academy series, all 10 contestants performed another original song, “All the Same.” After that, Bang and Janick praised and congratulated all 10 contestants in a prerecorded message, followed by quick messages from other staff, former Dream Academy contestants, and even contestants’ friends and family.

At last, in another prerecorded message, Bang and Janick discussed the name of the new international girl group created by The Debut: Dream Academy: The name of the group is Katseye! The contestants had been asked for their opinions beforehand and strongly approved of it.

Then the live finale of The Debut: Dream Academy revealed the final six, official members in the group lineup of Katseye, in no particular order:

1. Sophia
2. Lara
3. Yoonchae
4. Megan
5. Daniela
6. Manon

After the show ended, the final score breakdown for the 10 contestants was provided, in terms of both total fan votes and also the scores generated when votes and judging were combined. Here are the final rankings, in descending order of score:

1. Sophia Total Score: 88.33. (Early Voting Score: 40. Live Voting Score: 10. Judge Score: 38.33)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 84,667 / Live Voting – 15,931
2. Lara Total Score: 82.67. (Early Voting Score: 37. Live Voting Score: 9. Judge Score: 36.67)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 69,722 / Live Voting – 12,876
3. Daniela Total Score: 79. (Early Voting Score: 32. Live Voting Score: 7. Judge Score: 40)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 42,682 / Live Voting – 7,685
4. Yoonchae Total Score: 78. (Early Voting Score: 34. Live Voting Score: 8. Judge Score: 36)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 44,920 / Live Voting – 8,239
5. Megan Total Score: 68.33. (Early Voting Score: 24. Live Voting Score: 3. Judge Score: 41.33)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 37,486 / Live Voting – 6,573
6. Manon Total Score: 68. (Early Voting Score: 30. Live Voting Score: 5. Judge Score: 33)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 38,625 / Live Voting – 7,068
7. Samara Total Score: 66.67. (Early Voting Score: 28. Live Voting Score: 6. Judge Score: 32.67)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 38,351 / Live Voting – 7,095
8. Ezrela Total Score: 60. (Early Voting Score: 26. Live Voting Score: 4. Judge Score: 30)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 38,320 / Live Voting – 6,654
9. Emily Total Score: 57.67. (Early Voting Score: 20. Live Voting Score: 1. Judge Score: 36.67)
   Total Votes: Early Voting – 26,614 / Live Voting – 5,301
10. Marquise Total Score: 57.33. (Early Voting Score: 22. Live Voting Score: 2. Judge Score: 33.33)
    Total Votes: Early Voting – 28,736 / Live Voting – 5,471

That concludes our The Debut: Dream Academy summary and results! Thank you for reading to this point. For more about Katseye, check out exactly how old the members currently are, and here is everything we know so far about when exactly Katseye will debut.